Behind the Lens: When the Sky Catches Fire

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Lake Michigan has a way of surprising you, especially when the sky catches fire. Just when you think you know her moods, she shifts—sometimes in a whisper, sometimes in a blaze.

Lately, our winter days continue to shroud us in a ceiling of gray. The kind that flattens time, where one hour looks just like the next and the sun feels like a rumor. I wasn’t chasing a masterpiece that evening. I was simply out, camera in hand, moving through another overcast day.

Then, without warning, the sky cracked open.

What had been dull and muted ignited into molten color. Lava reds and ember oranges pouring across the horizon, set against Lake Michigan’s sapphire blue. It felt unreal, like the world briefly forgot its rules to keep us hidden in the gray.

When the Sky Catches Fire: I Move, A Lot

Initially, it was hard to stop moving. Different angles. Different distances. Shoreline to overlook. Wide frames, tight details. The light was changing by the second, and each shift offered a new story. The clouds became brushstrokes. The water’s edge moved like lava. Even the wind seemed to participate, rippling the surface into motion.

I captured stills and recorded a video with my camera for my social pages. Some moments are just to beautiful not to share in motion. The pulsing colors, the breathing sky, was too alive to leave behind in photographs only.

And then, I stopped

There are times in the field when I lower the camera and let the scene exist without me trying to translate it. I stood there, inhaling cold, clean air. The kind that feels like it’s rinsing your lungs and your thoughts at the same time. For a few beats, I wasn’t a photographer. I was simply there.

I’ve learned that these pauses matter.

When I step back—mentally and physically—I return more present. More aware. More receptive to the subtle gestures of light and space. It’s in that reset that I find myself better able to capture what a place feels like, not just what it looks like.

Beauty doesn’t always announce itself in advance. It slips in between errands, activities and expectations. Sometimes it waits for us to be paying attention. If we’re lucky, we’re standing in exactly the right place when our own sky catches fire.

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Author’s Note

This sunset unfolded in minutes and held on for several minutes. The surprise, blazing inferno was a reminder in some respects about the frustrations we experience in Life. We need to keep showing up—even on gray days—because transformation often arrives unannounced.

For a look back at another Behind the Lens moment When Inspiration Chases You reflects on our following our instincts and passions.